A new trend has gone viral on Youtube -- to smoke alcohol instead of drink it. In this YouTube video, which has been viewed more than 2 million times, a man turns beer into a vapor and smokes it. Oakland County health officials warn that this practice can be deadly. (YouTube screenshot)

The body’s natural reaction after drinking too much alcohol is to vomit — but a new trend of consuming liquor prevents this from happening and could be deadly.

Most people consume alcohol by drinking it. But in an era where drugs and consumption are constantly changing to circumnavigate the law, a viral trend has begun where people inhale alcohol instead of drinking it.

The purpose? The effects of the alcohol are felt almost immediately and it allows a person to become intoxicated without all the calories.

Health officials say that these so-called “benefits” are not worth it.

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“(The alcohol) is not processed. It’s an instant drunk. There’s no way for the body to shut it down. In binge drinking, when someone is consuming it through the mouth as regular intake, their body will reject it,” said Julie Brenner, executive director of the North Oakland Community Coalition, a nonprofit organization made up of Lake Orion and Oxford residents and public leaders raising awareness of adolescent alcohol abuse.

With smoking alcohol, the vapors are released directly into the lungs and are quickly diffused into the bloodstream, Brenner said.

“As an adult, we’ll have a glass of wine. By the time it gets into our system, it’s been processed through our livers. Well, it’s not being processed. It’s instantaneously released into their systems,” said Brenner.

Even though a person feels the effects of the alcohol quicker when smoking it, the effects also don’t last as long. So, even though the alcohol is still in the body, in approximately 20 to 40 minutes, a person will no longer feel it — which makes he or she more likely to take another huff of the vapor.

This makes overdosing and alcohol poisoning more likely.

“Teens are creative,” said Brenner. “We are hoping we are instilling our kids with the knowledge that, with something like this, it’s new and exciting for them, but it’s excessively dangerous and can lead to death. My advice to anyone — don’t do it. We’re trying to save lives.”

Hundreds of YouTube videos can be found online of mostly men in their 20s recording themselves while using carbon dioxide pills, dry ice, asthma nebulizers, vaporizers or pressurized air pumps to turn their liquor into a vapor.

The company Vaportini has profited from this trend. The Chicago-based company sells vaporizers which were invented in 2009 and first went on sale for $34.50 in December 2012.

Vaportini founder Julie Palmer couldn’t be reached before deadline, but, on her website, Palmer said, “It can be a bit intimidating at first because of the novel approach to the consumption of alcohol.”

“The effects don’t last as long as traditional consumption, but that can certainly be a positive aspect. ... The Vaportini is legal to sell in all states for any establishment with a ‘Consumption on Premise’ license.”

Kathy Forzley, health officer and manager at the Oakland County Health Division, said employees are currently studying this new trend, which she first heard about in June.

“I think it’s extremely important, in our first line of defense, to raise awareness. Writing a law for this device or that device is a very difficult way to protect our public because, you outlaw one thing, only to have a new device made,” said Forzley.

“In terms of outlawing the practice, that is something legislators will look in to. In the mean time, it’s the public health (department’s) role to make sure there is an understanding in the community as to the dangers of this practice.”

Forzley said, if someone goes to the hospital for alcohol poisoning after consuming in this manner, it will most likely be more difficult to get the liquor out of a person’s system. After all, doctors cannot pump a person’s stomach when the alcohol was absorbed through the lungs.

She said that, while it will metabolize eventually, “the fact is, you can raise your blood alcohol content so rapidly that it can reach dangerous levels before you realize what’s happening.”

Forzley stressed that, although the alcohol is not being consumed in the normal fashion, it still has just as much of an effect on a person’s blood alcohol level.

Forzley said that the ways of turning the alcohol into a vapor are dangerous in and of itself.

“For example, one of the ways of smoking it is pouring (alcohol) over dry ice, which is a very dangerous practice,” she said. “You can be overcome by carbon monoxide and actually suffocate. And dry ice does have a lot of harmful symptoms when exposed to it. … It can cause confusion, dizziness, headaches, sweating, upset stomach, eye irritation or, in general, having a hard time breathing. You should never, ever be in a close confinement with dry ice.”

Christina Nicholas, chief of substance abuse, said, “We always recommend that parents speak to their children regarding the dangers of drug and alcohol use, period — but also, regarding this, how it can affect their body, their brain and that they can overdose and die from it.”

FYI

Here are some organizations which focus on preventing and helping those suffering from substance abuse in Oakland County:

— The Royal Oak Community Coalition promote a healthy community free of substance abuse for youth and those who live in, work in and/or visit Royal Oak. For more information, visit www.ci.royal-oak.mi.us/rocc or call 248-546-7622.

— The nurse-on-call for the Oakland County Health Division can be reached at 800-848-5533 or noc@oakgov.com. For more information about the Oakland County Health Division, visit www.oakgov.com/health.

— Alcoholics Anonymous of Oakland County is located at 168 University Drive in Pontiac. For more information, call 248-332-3521. For more information, visit www.aaoaklandcountymi.org.

To report underage drinking, call the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office non-emergency line at 248-858-4911.

Contact Monica Drake at 248-745-4687. Subscribe to her Tout video feed at www.tout.com/u/monica_adele.